Cliff Avril‘s numbers are down, no doubt about it. He is on pace to have a career low in tackles and his least amount of sacks since 2009. Some of that has to do with missing the first game of the season but I suspect a lot has to do with his snap count.

You may remember Clinton McDonald did not make theSeahawks 53 man roster coming out of camp. However, on the Friday before the teams second game they released right tackle Mike Person and signed McDonald.

Clinton repaid the Seahawks by hitting Colin Kaepernick and pressuring him a couple more time. The following week he had his first career sack and is now on pace to becoming a double digit sack master.

Brandon Mebane is one of those players that the numbers always lie. I know Richards Sherman says “Numbers don’t lie” but they do. It is impossible to quantify Brandon’s production based on a tackle or sack.

PFF Game Ball #SeahawksBrandon Mebane impact in run defense in different ways in both halves as the standout performer in this game.

Heath Farwell – 2 tackles (8) 1 solo (4) 1 missed tackle (4)

Malcolm Smith – 12 tackles (48) 9 solo (36) 1 tackle for loss (4)

Malcolm Smith is on pace to shatter his career high of 22 tackles set last season. Of course he spent most of last season backing up LeRoy Hill. Smith may find himself back on the bench when Bruce Irvin is back on the field.

I’m not saying that Earl Thomas is playing for a new contract, but Earl Thomas is playing for a new contract. Next season Earl Thomas will enter the final year of his contract.

Generally the Seahawks front office look to extend their core players before they have a chance to reach free agency.

Thomas is on pace to have by far the best year of his young career. He is a great player every season every season. Based on statements Earl made this offseason about Dashon Goldson’s contract situation lead me to believe he is definitely motivated by the money.

Chris Maragos – 2 tackles (8) 1 solo (4) 1 fumble recovery (4)

Kam Chancellor‘s tackles are a bit lower than his typical 4 game average and his interceptions are up. I’ll take interceptions over tackles any day, especially when players along the defensive line are picking up extra tackles.

That means less running backs are getting past the first level of the defense.

Steven Hauschka has always been a very accurate kicker however there has also always been questions about his leg strength. His lack of leg strength has been an issue for him kicking the ball off in the past.

This season Hauschka has had 24 kickoffs and 18 of them have been touchbacks. I’m not sure where that ranks in the league but I’ll take that average.

You get the feeling he’s AUTOMATIC lining up for a FG this year don’t you?

What a great start to the season it has been. I’m sure there are some players looking to step up a bit more over the next 4 games, but like I said before, the wins are the most important stat there is.